DHAKA: India has told Bangladesh it would benefit economically if Dhaka granted transit facilities for goods passing through the country to north eastern Indian states, the Daily Star said on Monday. “Yes, 1 it’s correct that transit occupies a pivotal consideration in our thinking,” Indian Foreign Secretary Salman Haider told the Star at the end of a three day visit to Dhaka on Sunday. His remarks came in reply to a question about whether India would link the transit issue with a longstanding dispute over sharing waters from the Ganges River, which passes through both countries.
“Because of the absence of transit facilities, transportation of goods from other parts of India to our northeastern states is very expensive. Prices of most items there are often higher by 15 or 20 percent and sometimes even more,” the Star quoted Haider as saying. He said “Bangladesh could benefit economically from the use of its port and by providing transit user facilities. “It would just open the economic lifeline of the Indian states in the eastern region and would also be an economic boon to Bangladesh.” Bangladesh says the availability of adequate water from the two countries’ common rivers is a matter of life and death for millions of its people, particularly in north em districts.
The Ganges, known as the Padma in Bangladesh, originates in the Himalayas in Nepal and flows through India and Bangladesh before emptying into the Bay of Bengal.
Article extracted from this publication >> July 24, 1996
